Emperor’s daughter Su Baek Hyang is  one of a kind historical drama (Sageuk: in Korean) that I watched  in a long time. Well balanced, interesting twists and turns,characters that i couldn’t stop caring about and even some kind of accuracy in a historical sense made me become a fan, once the story got going anyways. I fell in love with this little gem that I found by accident and I have so many reasons why I ended up liking it a lot. The drama being well balanced in many different aspects is the reason behind it all.

 

When I critique a Korean drama I go after many things. The acting chops,set design,the script, setting and the casting is an example that I go by when it comes to Korean drama reviews.  However, I don’t expect too much when it comes to the cinematography aspect since I know these shows only have so much budget to work with.

 

Su Baek Hyang went beyond my expectations of Korean dramas. I enjoyed the lighting,certain camera angles and shots. I am not an expert on camerawork but I was able to feel the sincerity through my computer screen. It felt classy for a TV drama; especially for a Sageuk drama. The set design was marvelous for the limited budget they had. According to some information given on the internet, the budget for Su Baek Hyang was very small compared to Empress Ki but despite all that I was able to see that they put a lot of sweat and tears into this project.

 

I absolutely fell in love with the architecture of the time period. Emperor’s daughter Su Baek Hyang takes place in the empire called Paekche in the 6th century. I got the feeling that the people that were working on this drama knew what they were doing since I was able to picture Paekche of the 6th century through the gorgeous palaces and costumes.

The wardrobe,makeup,hair and accessories seemed to fit the era perfectly. I really enjoyed watching certain characters wear Paekche attire; especially my favorite actor Jo Hyun Jae who plays Myeongnong in this drama.

 

I loved the characters a lot in this show. A lot of the times Korean dramas can be notorious for characters that feel half-hearted at best. However, with Su Baek Hyang whether it’s good or bad I was able to relate to the roles that these actors were portraying. This is where I would praise the writing for the show. It’s an 108 long episode so it can be daunting but I was addicted to it once it got passed the hump at the beginning. The more I watched, the more addicted and engaged I became. The intriguing situations, the twist and turns,the emotional aspects of the characters that I could relate to, and also fangirling over Myongnong ( Jo Hyun Jae).

 

Emperor’s daughter Su Baek Hyang is a period drama that involves familial issues mainly revolving around our four main characters that will have you in for a thrill ride. As the title suggests there’s Solan (Seo Hyun Jin), Solhi ( Seo Woo), Myongnong (Jo Hyun Jae),  and Jinmu (Jun Tae Soo). These characters would make you feel like you are on the edge of your seat. The characters are well written for a Korean drama, very intriguing and you can’t help but to relate to them as well. The performance given by these actors were really good too.

 

Solan (Seo Hyun Jin) is a carefree, outgoing, a bit chatty,tomboyish and not very ambitious. She can come off as a bit ditsy but pure hearted nonetheless. Beauty wise she might not resemble her mother; Lady Chaehwa but as far as her personality goes she is more or less the carbon copy of her mother. On the other hand; Solhi (Seo Woo) is very beautiful and any man would fall head over heels for this maiden. However, beautiful flowers can have thorns on them and this younger sister of Solan( Seo Hyun Jin) is exactly that. She loves extravagance and the finer things that life can bring such as: Nice silk,tea,and flowers which were somewhat of luxury items of that time period.

 

Myongnong (Jo Hyun Jae) is a neat freak. If any of you have been following Jo Hyun Jae’s acting career there was this show called Only You. Jo Hyun Jae played a character named Han Yi Joon and Myongnong’s overtly clean character reminded me of Yi Joon from Only You. I couldn’t help but to wonder if the actual historical figure was really a neat freak or a nod to the fans using references of his previous drama. Myongnong is a very loyal character and also almost a borderline perfectionist/workaholic. However, with him trying very hard to win the approval of his father, but deep within he is a lonely character.

 

Jinmu ( Jun Tae Soo) is almost a childlike figure that loves to play Jopo ( Almost like a chess game of Paekche empire) and loves the nightlife; meaning he enjoyed going to the red lights district. sometimes things on the surface is not so real. We might think that he is just all about play but just like Myongnong ( Jo Hyun Jae), Jinmu (Jun Tae Soo) is in a similar emotional state and this makes you feel for him despite how much of an annoying brat he can be.

 

There are so many  supporting characters that should be mentioned but to keep this review short and sweet I will only touch on it briefly. Before I get into some of the side characters, I would like to say that practically none of the people in Su Baek Hyang are disposable which is pretty rare in TV dramas worldwide. This goes to show that the people that were involved in the writing process did their jobs right. Also, I can see the passion when it comes to the area of character development and this is why no character really goes to waste in Su Baek Hyang.

 

Su Baek Hyang is pretty serious in tone, which most historical dramas are and this drama is no exception. And a lot of the times a drama like this needs a little bit of fresh air: which is a good comic relief. At the right moment we were introduced to Ddol Dae (Kim Roe Ha) and Manggu (Kim Min Kyo). These two comedic duo will keep you occupied when things can get a little bit dull. That comes with the territory with historical flicks. The name Ddol Dae literally means Knucklehead. Ddol Dae (Kim Roe Ha) is famous for his major headbutts and Manggu (Kim Min Kyo) is very good at releasing gas and his name means exactly that. These two almost have like brotherly relationship but sometimes you can’t help but to giggle  at their bromance; especially on Manggu’s end. I really love their banters as well. They speak in their regional dialect which is pretty entertaining; especially if you are familiar with the Korean language. Yeo Ok (Park Hee Jin) is a widower, Ddol Dae and Yeo Ok are a good comic relief as well. All three of them crack me up once they start interacting with each other.

 

Chancellor Yon (Kim Byong Ok)  is another character. This guy just makes you feel aggravated inside. Throughout the whole show you just can’t help but to squirm because of the things that he comes up with. What do you expect? He is supposed to be the villain. I think they did the casting right since just by looking at Chancellor Yon, you already feel uneasy before he even does anything.

 

Emperor Muryong ( Lee Jae Ryong) cared about his countrymen a little too much, Empress Eun Hye (Lim Sae Mi) young and sweet, Dorim (Cha Hwa Ryeon) remains loyal to her new country, Dae Woon (Seong Ji Ru) firm but gets too attached and too trusting, Sunimun (Kim Young Jae) erratic, Kuchon (Yoon Tae Young) mute and deaf but can smell things out that are miles away, Kangbok ( Yeo Ui Joo) loyal to his boss and sometimes can be really cute, and Naeun (Ka Deuk Hee) this girl is full of surprises. These side characters played their parts so well that they enhanced the drama even more. People that worked on Su Baek Hyang made it with care since even small characters were able to shine in their own ways. You question their actions but at the same time try to empathize with them.

 

Like I mentioned at the beginning of this review; this drama is one of a kind. Normally, in Korean dramas they just deal with the romance aspect of it or just family but sometimes both. In Su Baek Hyang it has most of the elements that most Korean dramas acquire but they do it in their unique ways, so it didn’t feel stale and boring. Su Baek Hyang is a drama based on familial issues but it also has romance, and maybe even a little bromance between certain characters. I liked the bromance between Ddol Dae and Manggu and I was rooting for Solan to be with a certain somebody. I loved the cute little interactions between Solan and Myongnong. Myongnong is a sweet guy but has a hard time expressing his feelings towards a woman.

 

One of the most intriguing thing about Su Baek Hyang is the psycho-horror element of it.  Just looking at Solhi’s face was super scary. Solhi does some crazy things in the course of this 108 episode show but even when she is not doing a whole lot you just can’t help but to feel creeped out.  If I were to pick an actress or an actor that left an impression on me was Seo Woo, I never dreamed of her playing such a crazy character. If you are used to seeing her innocent, cute and fun personality in Tamra the Island, throw away that image immediately, because she will have you scared and to cover yourself in blankets in Su Baek Hyang.

 

It was nice to see Jo Hyun Jae again after a long time being in hiatus with being his fan. It was a pleasant surprise to see him after such a big gap of not keeping track of his work. This is the drama that made me realize that Jo Hyun Jae grew as an actor. This goes to show that direction, the script and the people that are involved with a certain project is very crucial, since that can either make or break someone’s career. I believe that Su Baek Hyang proved that Jo Hyun Jae did evolve as an actor over the years. Also this show has a good ensemble of actors and actresses. Some I have seen in the past and some I have discovered for the first time.

 

The score or should I say O.S.T was good. The only gripe I have in this department is repeating the theme songs a lot but that goes for just about all Korean TV dramas. So, more or less this is a typical K-drama trope. The theme song for the drama is apparently a real folk song of the Paekche empire and to me it sounds really pretty. There are three different versions of the theme song. The one you hear at the end of the show is sung by an actual Korean folk singer. The two that you hear in the background of the show are sung by Lee Sang Eun and Seo Hyun Jin (Solan) herself.  The score was good but I think it could have been better. Instead of just using Western instruments and make it sound Asiatic they could have used traditional instruments to make it sound a bit more Eastern.

 

Extreme greed, jealousy, loneliness/abandonment seem to be the central theme of Su Baek Hyang. These  elements lead certain characters to go cause a whole bunch of trouble and mischief. It is normal for a human being to feel greedy,jealous and lonely but when these human emotions go out of hand everything can go haywire. I had a hard time seeing some of the characters being blinded by these human weaknesses. It’s understandable for them to feel these emotions and act upon them, since all humans go through it on a day to day basis. However, just like anything, if you go too far with something it can get you into trouble. I had to watch some of these characters in self- destructive mode as the show progressed. At first, I was annoyed, irritated and even angry towards the villains but at the same time I pitied their own demise.

 

I was quite happy with the outcome of Su Baek Hyang but the ending felt a bit rushed. Maybe this is with most Korean dramas. So again, it’s a trope. Or maybe it’s because the show was a bit shortened due the Sochi winter games of 2013. I felt like not only it was rushed but also thought something was missing before the ending. I will not spoil the ending for you so you gotta find out why I was happy with the end result of Su Baek Hyang.

I will end it with my rating of the show. 1-10, one means very bad and 10 means perfection. I would confidently give it an 8.5- 9.0. So basically Su Baek Hyang is an above average show and I hope those of you reading this are convinced that this show is worth watching, despite the length. It’s well balanced Korean TV drama that has all the good elements and if you are a fan of historical flicks or like the actors/actresses like Jo Hyun Jae and Seo Woo, then you would most definitely enjoy it. Happy Su Baek Hyang watching!